Charger Sports

Cross Country: kicking up some dust in the wind

Laura Denton, Copy Editor

The Cookeville High School Cross Country team officially began its season Aug. 2, and Coach Wrasman is very optimistic. The runners had suggested workouts over the summer, and have been practicing every day after school for several hours. Everyone is warming up for a new season.

CHS boasts many promising runners for this year. For the men’s team are seniors Tommy Adams, Andrew Bach, and Justin Stanford, as well as juniors Wes Flatt, James Ivey, John Allison, and Ben Anderson. The women’s team’s top runners include juniors Sarah Kmet, Molly Sasser, Emily Earls, and Megan Graves, sophomores Rochelle Crook, Jill Frank, and Sarah Zitting, as well as freshman Vicki Horner.

Each practice, the team does different types of workouts. They do everything from pace runs, which focus on speeding up and slowing down, to short and long distance timed runs. The pace runs relate to passing people during a race. Short timed runs build intensity, and long timed runs build endurance. “The point of a race is not just to finish it, it’s about how fast you go,” says Coach Wrasman. He always emphasizes the importance of technique and drive to his team. “Runners have to deal with a lot of boredom,” Wrasman continues, “It’s easy for a runner to zone out and lose focus during a race.”

Wrasman feels that running is a worthwhile sport for many reasons. “First of all,” he begins, ”running itself has health benefits. You also have to develop a lot of self discipline to keep up the pace when nobody is looking. You know it’s going to hurt, you know it’s going to make you tired... That develops a certain amount of courage.” Because races have team scores rather than just individual scores, running builds character; a runner has to keep up the pace not just for himself, but for the sake of his teammates.

Many other athletes that run track and play sports such as basketball and soccer run cross country in their off season. “It keeps them in good shape and makes a great crossover sport,” says Wrasman.

Confident in the ability of his team, Wrasman states, “We have a lot of good athletes. If they’ll step up to the challenge, we’ll have a great season.” The team’s first meet was Aug. 24, a home jamboree.